Between war and patronage: the life of Caspar Kohl, etcher of arms and armour

Abstract

This study focuses on the life of Caspar Kohl (1594-1652), father of the more widely known David Casparsson Kohl (1628-1685), who contributed significantly to the transformation of Scandinavian arms and armour production from the early to late seventeenth century. Both Caspar and David Casparsson specialised in steel etching and took the lead in several Swedish and Danish arms and armour workshops. Although the Kohl family’s importance, and particularly that of David Casparsson Although the Kohl family’s importance, and particularly that of David Casparsson Kohl, in the history of Scandinavian weapon making has long been recognised in German, Swedish and Danish literature, little is known about the family’s actual origins. This article intends to shed new light on their ancestry, early connections and diverse occupations as noble immigrants in Sweden and Denmark.